I have to believe that any idea
that actually brings about change would have either come from the bottom or at
least is a concept that the bottom can and does relate to. While people want to believe that those who
hold top positions in a company are actually in charge, the opposite seems to
be true. The bottom two-thirds of any
company are the one who make things happen.
They are the ones on the front lines dealing with the day-to–day details
to ensure the success of the company.
That being said I do believe the top one-third hold a very important
role in the way the bottom two-thirds behaves. The idea that leadership is all knowing is
slowly fading away and in its place is the idea that if both parts work
together then the solutions are not only more personal but also
profitable.
Obolensky (2014) addressed the idea
that leaders were realizing their job was not to know everything or always have
the solution but that they were to set up ways for the solution to flow either
up or down. I believe these changes are
a result of a changing workforce and attitude among leaders. The idea of being a leader is no longer about
having power and control but about teaching and guiding. It used to be that the most powerful leaders
were those that had the most obedient and dependent followers. Now it seems there is more pride and status
in how much a leader can teach their followers and how well they perform in the
absence of that leader. The days of
dictating are gone.
Another factor that plays a part in
the shift in leadership is what Obolensky (2014) described as “behavior breeds
behavior” (p. 38). This is the case with
both positive and negative attributes.
When followers see their leader taking an interest in their thoughts and
ideas then that behavior carries on down the line and across the board. Unfortunately, the same goes for negative
behaviors if the followers feel that their leader doesn’t care about what they
think or feel then that is evident in their work and their attitudes. When people are given a sense of worth the
pride in their work grows and they are more apt to accept change.
Another reason change may be
occurring is the shift in thinking that the leader knows everything. Gone are the days where leaders had to know
the answers to every question, now it is acceptable for a leader to say they
don’t have the answer but they will do their best to find it. This creates a dynamic where leaders are
viewed more as humans than robots, that they have feelings and make mistakes
just like everyone else. When the leader
can admit he does not have an answer it can open up a dialogue with their
followers in which an answer may emerge.
As I am not with an organization at
this time, I will address the idea of bottom-up leadership in regards to my
former employer. I would like to think
that the ski area I worked for was capable of making the change to bottom-up
leadership, I am sad to say it is not.
The leaders in the organization still subscribe to the old theories and
ways of running a business. They believe
that leaders lead, or should I say dictate, and followers take directions. There is no conversations going on between
the two “factions”, in fact, there is very little communication at all. This is all unfortunate as the followers are
the ones who have the most face-to-face contact with the guests, and stand to
make the best suggestions on how to improve the guest experience. Unfortunately the leaders feel they know best
and the followers are not important enough to even speak with.
In my own experience as a leader, I
find that bottom-up leadership is extremely important and I have always been
one to open a dialogue with my staff. I
understand and believe wholeheartedly that they do know the guests the best and
have the most important feedback. It is
my job to interpret that feedback and make the best changes that will yield the
most results. I feel my way of looking
at leadership is a direct result of my experience as a teacher. I always based my success in the classroom on
how well my students understood the material and how they could apply it to
their own situations and lives. The same
goes for my followers.
Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex adaptive leadership:
Embracing paradox and
uncertainty (2nd ed.). Farnham, England:
Gower Publishing Limited.
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